


Together Again

by magicalpaganini (heartsflush)



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Other, Reunions, The Masquerade, these are my children and i don't wanna hurt them anymore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-10
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-24 15:31:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15633543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartsflush/pseuds/magicalpaganini
Summary: A re-envisioning of Alexis and Girard's reunion at the Masquerade.Contains spoilers for Book XIII - Death and Book XIV - Temperance.





	Together Again

**Author's Note:**

> they're very light spoilers but they're there ANYWAY
> 
> i couldn't stop thinking about if girard were in the band that plays in julian's route and then this happened

The stage lights were warm on Girard’s face as he tuned his guitar, listening carefully to the sound of the piano. He sighed, looking around the room; everywhere he looked, there were people enjoying themselves and smiling beneath their masks. It almost didn’t feel real.

It had been three years since Alexis had died, and though he’d sort of gotten his life back on its feet, he didn’t feel the same. Who could expect him to, anyway? His best friend had left the world suddenly, unfairly, without any goodbye. He felt like a part of him had been torn from his body, and every time he thought about them, tears welled behind his eyes.

“You doing okay, Girard?” the soprano asked, looking at Girard with concern.

Girard stifled his tears and put on a weak smile. “I’m fine, Cornelia. Thank you.”

Cornelia smiled gently. “You’re thinking about your friend, right?”

Girard bit his lip, saying nothing. Cornelia placed a hand on his shoulder. “I know it’s tough,” she said. “But if they were here, I think they’d want you to do your best and put your heart in your performance.”

“You’re right,” Girard replied. “Thanks again.”

Cornelia smiled, then went back to get ready. Moments later, the lights dimmed, and Girard began to play the first song in the set list. It was slow, meant to invite the couples on the floor to dance.

Girard glanced up, looking around at the faces of the dancers and the diners. One particularly voracious patron was eating through the entire buffet table with incredible speed. On the floor, couples were dancing slowly to the music. Some wore big, elaborate costumes with diamonds and rhinestones practically dripping from the fabric, while others wore more simple costumes with a more subdued flair. As the band reached the bridge of the song, one couple in the center of the dance floor caught his eye.

The taller dancer, a man, wore a black suit adorned with raven feathers. He was facing away from the band as he twirled his partner around, and as he turned around, Girard could see that his mask covered his right eye. Girard’s eyes fell to the shorter dancer; their dress was teal and covered in pearls, and their long, red hair was tied up above their shoulders.

That’s odd, Girard thought to himself. They almost looked like--

As the song ended, they turned around to applaud for the band, and their eyes met his.

His breath caught in his throat; he’d recognize their eyes anywhere.

Alexis.

They seemed to recognize him, too; they whispered something to their partner and began to approach the stage.

Cornelia, noticing what was going on, walked over to Girard. “Go see them,” she whispered. “We’ll take care of it up here.”

He didn’t have to be told twice; he put his guitar carefully aside and practically ran off the side of the stage. Girard stopped, staring at the person approaching them. Their mask was nearly falling off, so they took it off hastily; their face, though they had grown older, was still the same. Still _theirs._

“Is it really you?” he all but whispered as they approached him, unable to raise his voice much louder. “Or am I seeing things?”

Alexis nodded, and Girard could see that they were close to tears. “It’s really me.”

Girard took a step closer. “How? You died.” His voice wavered on his last word, and he felt like he would start to cry at any second.

They bit their lip. “Asra did something, some sort of ritual. I’m not really sure what it entailed, but it brought me back.”

Alexis carefully wiped their eyes, trying not to disturb their makeup. “But if you’re still unsure, test me.”

Girard frowned. “What?”

By this time, the band had begun another song, and Alexis’s partner from before was walking over to them. Alexis barely even noticed him. “Test me. Ask me something only you and I would know.”

“What’s this about?” the feather-clad man asked, standing by Alexis’s side.

“Hang on,” Alexis said, their gaze still fixed on Girard.

Girard thought for a moment, then smiled. “Alright. Wie heißt deine Geigenlehrerin?”

Alexis groaned loudly before answering. “Frau Fiedler. Oder Frau Sauer.” They said something else in Vordonauen that Girard didn’t understand, but that was enough for him. He pulled them into a tight embrace, letting tears fall at last.

“I missed you so much,” he managed to say, his body shaking with sobs.

Alexis didn’t hesitate as they hugged him back just as tightly, crying just as much. “I’m so sorry,” they spoke into his shoulder. “Girard, I’m so sorry.”

Girard pulled away, his hands remaining on their shoulders. “What on earth could you possibly be sorry for?”

“I didn’t _tell_ you,” they answered, wiping away tears from their cheek. “I didn’t tell anyone that I--”

“Alexis,” Girard interrupted. “It’s okay.”

They blinked. “It’s not, though--”

“It is.” He pushed a lock of hair behind their ear, gazing at them lovingly. “You’re back now, and that’s what matters.”

“He’s right,” the other man said, placing a hand on Alexis’s shoulder. “If anything, it’s my fault for--”

“Julian, what have we said about blaming yourself for my death?” Alexis interrupted. “It’s no more your fault than it is Asra’s.”

Girard blinked. “Julian? You mean Julian Devor--”

Alexis and Julian hushed him quickly, looking around. “Yes,” Alexis whispered. “But he’s not supposed to be alive again, so keep your voice down.”

Girard stared at the doctor, then at Alexis. He then laughed. “Death must be really unhappy with you two.”

Alexis smiled. “I’m sure he can take it.”

“Speaking of things that should stay dead,” Julian interjected, “shouldn’t we be looking for Lu--I mean you-know-who?”

“Shit, you’re right,” Alexis cursed. Then, an idea flashed across their face. They turned back to Girard, their signature grin stretching across their face.

“You up for some ghost hunting?”

 

After catching Girard up on the situation and getting him a costume that wasn’t stained with eyeliner and tears, the trio wandered through various rooms of the palace, searching for Lucio and enjoying themselves in equal parts. Alexis made sure to introduce Girard to everyone they could, including the Countess herself; by the time they made their way out into the palace gardens, Girard must have met at least thirty people, if not more.

“You’ve really changed, Alexis,” he mused, looping his arm through their elbow. Julian had gone off to talk with one of Nadia’s sisters, leaving Girard and Alexis at the elaborate fountain in the center of the hedge maze.

Alexis gave him a look. “What do you mean?”

Girard sat on the fountain’s edge, and they sat next to him. “Well, ten or so years ago, you’d have been throwing water balloons at these nobles, not mingling with them in a pretty dress.”

“Oh, come on, that was one time,” Alexis replied, shoving him a little.

“Mm-hmm,” Girard hummed. “Once with the water balloons, another time with eggs, and--”

“I’m gonna stop you right there before one of those nobles hears you and we get in trouble,” Alexis interrupted.

Girard laughed, covering his mouth with his hand. Alexis laughed with him, and they didn’t speak for another few moments. Girard sighed, and Alexis laid their head on his shoulder.

“I really missed you,” they said, lacing their fingers through his.

“I missed you too,” Girard replied.

Alexis sighed. “I’m not sure I can go back to not having you here.”

They squeezed his hand, and Girard squeezed theirs back. “You won’t have to.”

“What?” Alexis asked, looking up at him.

“You heard me,” he said, looking back at them. “I want to stay with you.”

Alexis blinked in surprise. “Girard, I don’t expect you to move your life out here just to be with me. That’s not--”

Girard smiled at them, stopping them in the middle of their sentence. “If there’s anything the past nine years has taught me, it’s that I’m...okay on my own, but I’m better when I’m with you. I’d give anything for you, Alexis.”

He squeezed their hand again, looking directly into their eyes.

“I love you.”

Alexis blinked again, then smiled, blushing furiously. “I love you too, Girard. I...I’m really glad you found me again.”

They were about to lean in and kiss him when Julian burst through the bushes. “Alexis? Trouble. He’s here.”

Alexis practically leapt from their seat, pulling Girard up with them. Julian ran off, presumably to lead them to Lucio. Alexis started to follow him, then stopped, turning back to Girard.

“Hey,” they said, breathing heavily. “No matter what, keep yourself safe. I don’t know what’s gonna happen in there, but don’t do something stupid, okay?”

“The same goes for you,” Girard replied. “I can’t lose you again.”

Alexis looked at him, then made a split second decision. They pulled him close and kissed him roughly, their hands squeezing his shoulders. He kissed them back, pulling their hips toward him, then placing one hand on the back of their neck. Alexis pulled away a moment later and looked Girard straight in the eye, confidently smiling up at him.

“You’re not going to lose me, and I’m not going to lose you,” they said. “I promise.”

They gave him one last peck on the lips, then grinned confidently.

“Now let’s go roast some goat.”

**Author's Note:**

> i omitted the part where attendants passed out instruments to random people because i'm a musician and that hurt me to think about
> 
> german translation: "what's your violin teacher's name?" "mrs. fiedler. or mrs. sour"


End file.
